Kohima: Lawmakers from Assam and Nagaland are pushing to create a joint peace committee for the Disputed Area Belt. Sarupathar MLA Biswajit Phukan and Bhandari MLA Achumbemo Kikon spearheaded the plan. The group aims to bridge gaps between Golaghat and Wokha residents. It will include civil society representatives and local border magistrates. They met on September 19 at a friendship event in Hatidubi.
The committee seeks to settle friction without legal battles. Phukan insisted the group focus on local harmony. "If any dispute arises, this committee will attempt to resolve that dispute," he said. He stressed that the Supreme Court still handles the actual territory row. Regular people ignore the border line to survive. Poor families cannot simply pack up and leave.
The leaders have big plans for the region. They intend to stage a summit between Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio. A new express road between Chungajan and Dimapur should cut airport travel time to 15 minutes. Assam also plans to distribute 5 lakh tissue-cultured bamboo saplings for the Numaligarh Refinery, including 1 lakh free units for Naga residents. Phukan dismissed fears that planting trees equates to land theft. He labeled the drive a purely environmental move. Both states aim to replace old tensions with new economic progress.
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